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Resources for Evidence-Based Research in Social Work
Listed below are sources for researching evidence-based literature. The list includes article databases, book databases, resource management, organizations and resources for students.
Article Databases
Evidence-Based Databases
Cochrane Library Online 1999 – present.
A collection of evidence-based medicine databases. "The Cochrane Collaboration is an international non-profit and independent organization which produces and disseminates systematic reviews of healthcare interventions and promotes the search for evidence in the form of clinical trials and other studies of interventions" (from the website).
Campbell Collaboration 2000 - present.
The Campbell Collaboration is “…an international network of social scientists that would produce, maintain and disseminate systematic reviews of research evidence on the effectiveness of social interventions…” (from the website). Two of Campbell Collaboration data bases are the C2 Register of Interventions and Policy Evaluations (C2-RIPE) which includes reviews of research in Social Welfare, Criminal Justice, Education and Methods, and, the C2 Social, Psychological, Education, and Criminological Trials Registry (C2-SPECTR) which contains over 11,700 entries on randomized and possibly randomized trials. There is also C2-PROT which identifies prospective randomized trials.
Databases with Evidence-Based Limiting Features
CINAHL Plus with Full Text (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature) 1937 - present
Indexes articles in nursing, allied health and health sciences journals, books, book chapters, dissertations and pamphlets. Alert service is available.
Limit by: Evidence based care sheets (bibliography of evidence based articles on a particular topic), Evidence based practice, Special Interest (EBP or Social Work), Publication type (systematic review, critical path, practice guidelines, clinical trials, research)
Subject headings: meta-analysis; treatment outcomes
Medline 1950’s - present
Indexes articles in medicine, nursing, health care and related areas. Alert service is available.
Limit by: EBM Reviews (searches Cochrane’s systematic reviews, ACP Journal Club (evidence based articles) and periodicals with evidence based in the title and other related documents), Publication Type (Clinical Trial, Consensus Development Conference, Meta-analysis, Practice Guidelines)
Keywords: Evidence-based practice
PsycInfo 1887 - present
A comprehensive index to the literature in Psychology. Alert service is available.Limit by: Methodology (systematic reviews, meta-analysis, treatment outcome/clinical trial)
Subject headings: evidence based practice; clinical trials. Keywords: practice guidelines
Databases Without Evidence-Based Limiting Features
These databases use subject or descriptor headings to find articles on evidence based practice. You can also use the following key words to find relevant articles - systematic reviews, meta-analysis, clinical trials, practice guidelines, treatment outcomes, evidence-based practice, randomized controlled.
Academic Search Elite 1980’s - present
A multidisciplinary database covering many academic disciplines including Social Work. Alert service is available.
Subject headings: evidence-based social work; systematic reviews (medical research)
Ageline 1978 - present
Indexes journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations, and government reports in social gerontology plus issues related to aging.
Descriptors: evidence based practice; controlled clinical trials
Child Abuse, Child Welfare and Adoption Database 1965 - present
Journal articles, books, conference papers and other materials related to physical, sexual, emotional and psychological abuse. Keyword search only.
Criminal Justice Abstracts 1968 - present
Indexes journals, books, dissertations, reports and unpublished papers on criminology. Alert service is available.
ERIC (First Search) 1966 - present
Indexes journal articles, conference papers, dissertations, curricular material, documents, and more, in the field of Education. Alert service is available.
Descriptors: outcomes of education, guidelines
POPLINE 1970 - present
Worldwide coverage of population, family planning, and related health issues, including AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, maternal and child health in developing countries. Indexes journal articles, books, technical reports, and unpublished works. Alert service is available.
Social Services Abstracts 1979 – present
A major database for the field of Social Work. SSA indexes journal articles, dissertations, and includes books reviews. Alert service is available.
Subject Headings: treatment outcomes, evidence based practice
Specialized Databases
National Guideline Clearinghouse
"The National Guideline Clearinghouse™ (NGC) is a public resource for evidence-based clinical practice guidelines. The NGC mission is to provide physicians, nurses, and other health professionals, health care providers, health plans, integrated delivery systems, purchasers and others an accessible mechanism for obtaining objective, detailed information on clinical practice guidelines and to further their dissemination, implementation and us". You can also compare guidelines.
Web of Science 1900 - present
A database that covers the Social Sciences, Humanities and Sciences. It allows you to trace a journal article forward as cited by others.
Papers First 1993 - present
Indexes published congresses, symposia, conferences, workshops and meetings.
Index of papers presented at conferences worldwide.
Proceedings First 1993 - present
Index of worldwide conference proceedings.
Books
PAC
SDSU's online catalog.
WorldCat
WorldCat is a combined catalog of libraries world-wide. Each search will identify whether SDSU holds that item.
Interlibrary Loan
There are several ways to obtain a journal article or book that the SDSU Library does not own.
Journal Articles
Ingenta Connect
An Interlibrary Loan service for journal articles. The Library will pay up to $50 per article and you may request up to 30 articles per month.
ILL Request Service
An Interlibrary Loan service for periodical articles not available through the PAC or Ingenta. ILL Request Service takes approximately 7-14 days for delivery of periodical articles.
Books
Circuit
A union catalog of the following libraries - UCSD, USD, CSU San Marcos and San Diego County Libraries. Generally, it takes 1-2 days for delivery.
LINK+
A union catalog of California academic and public libraries, and, the University of Nevada academic libraries. It generally takes 3-4 days for delivery.
ILL Request Service
An Interlibrary Loan service for books not available through the PAC, CIrcuit, or Link+. It takes approximately 7-14 days for delivery of books.
Keeping Track of Your Research
Refworks
Refworks is a web-based citation manager which allows you to keep track of your references and create bibliographies in a particular style including APA. It is provided to faculty for free.
Keeping Up With The Literature
Periodicals (that publish on Evidence-based Research)
Journal of Evidence Based Social Work (available through Ingenta)
"The journal presents literature from practitioners, researchers and academics that collates and analyzes research findings relative to practice issues and intervention approaches over a given period of time".
Research on Social Work Practice (available online via the Library)
Research on Social Work Practice is a disciplinary journal devoted to the publication of empirical research concerning the assessment methods and outcomes of social work practice.
Search Alerts
You can create a search alert in many article databases. These alerts will send you new references to articles on your topic. You can create an alert on the same topic for several databases.
CSA Databases (Criminal Justice Abstracts, Social Services Abstracts,)
Choose Alert Me, log in, fill out the form, click on GO.
Ebscohost Databases (Academic Search Elite, CINAHL, Medline, PsycInfo)
Click on “Create an Alert for this Search”, sign in, click on OK.
Book Alerts
Some publishers offer “alerts” where they will email you announcements on new publications in a particular area such as Social Work. For publishers of Social Work materials, try the University of Michigan’s Social Work Library webpage.
Organizations
There are several organizations devoted to evidence based practice and research.
California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (CEBC)
This website provides information on evidence-based child welfare practiceshildren and families involved in the California public child welfare system".
Community Toolbox
The University of Kansas Work Group for Community Health and Development developed this website "to promote community health and development by connecting people, ideas and resources". This website links to the databases of best practices.
Evidence-Based Practice in Social Work
University of Michigan Social Work Library created an excellent webpage on evidence-based social work.
Juvenile Justice Evaluation Center Evidence Based Programs
"Justice Research and Statistics Association is working with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to improve the evaluation of juvenile justice programs in the States through the JJEC project. The goal is to enhance the capacity of states and local program personnel to conduct and/or participate in the evaluation of juvenile justice programs or juvenile justice system(s). JJEC Online is a tool designed to assist juvenile justice practitioners, policymakers, and state agency administrators with the assessment and evaluation of programs and initiatives". Provides links to “Resources on Evidenced-Based Programs and Practices in Juvenile Justice”
Middlesex University’s Teaching and Learning Resources for Evidence Based Practice (EBP)
Middlesex University in the United Kingdom has created a webpage on teaching EBP which includes finding evidence, implementing and evaluating change and references.
National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices
A database of interventions for the prevention and treatment of mental and substance use disorders.
Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE)
The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) was established by the United Kingdom to improve social care services for adults and children in the United Kingdom .
Social Programs That Work Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy
The nonprofit Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy mission is to “promote government policymaking based on rigorous evidence of program effectiveness”. This site summarizes findings from randomized controlled trials. Interventions are organized by categories including – Early Childhood, Education (K-12), substance abuse prevention and treatment and more.
Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR)
A Professional Society for Social Work Researchers.
This international Society was founded in 1994 and focuses on social work research. SSWR works collaboratively with a number of other organizations that are committed to improving support for research among social workers. Membership includes faculty in schools of social work and other professional schools, research staff in public and private agencies, and masters/doctoral students.
The Community Guide
Created by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), this webpage recommends programs and policies to promote population health. Organized by broad categories including alcohol, tobacco, mental health and violence.
Resources for Students
Students can use many of the databases described above to find information on evidence-based social work topics. Below are services to help you connect students with those sources.
Blackboard
Integrating Library Services, Resources, and Information Literacy into Blackboard
This webpage shows you how to add library databases and resources into your courses on Blackboard.
Course Reserves and Electronic Course Reserves (ECR)
You may place supplemental materials on reserve or have them scanned into the ECR system for your classes.
Readings
Subject Guide on Effectively Reading Medical Literature
Provides articles, books and web sources to help students read medical articles effectively including effectively reading systematic reviews.
McKee, Martin and Annie Britton. “Conducting a literature review on the effectiveness of health care interventions” Health Policy and Planning 12(3): 262-267
This article explains why it’s important to conduct a literature review (to find the best intervention for your client).
Please feel free to contact me if you have further questions or comments about Evidence Based Research or this handout.
Linda Muroi
LL 108L
594-2554
lmuroi@rohan.sdsu.edu
This page http://infodome.sdsu.edu/research/guides/class/swebresearch.shtml is maintained by Linda Muroi.
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File saved 10/16/07 07:59 PDT
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